Gas range



Oct. 25, 1938. J. E. CHAMBERS GAS RANGE Filed June 22, 1956 Gum/W Patented Oct. 25, 1938 I UNITED s ATE s PATENT OFFICE GAS RANGE John E. Chambers, Shelbyville, Ind.

Application June 22, 1936, Serial No. 86,477 7 4 Claims. '(ol. 12s 42) ,My invention relates to gas ranges, and it is my principal object to decrease the possibility that any .of the valves controlling the supply of gas to' the various burners of the range will be inadvertently leftv open to permit the escape of gas. v b

In carrying out myfinvention, I prefer to apply it to that typeof gas range in which the control members regulating the supply of gas to the various, burners are rather closely grouped at the frontof the range, although my invention in its broader aspects is not limited to this particular arrangement. Associated with each burner-control member I provide a signal member which occupies a normalposition when gas is shut off front elevation of the gas range showing the preferred arrangement of burner-control members and signal members; Fig. 2 is a. vertical section on an enlarged scale on the line 2.2 of Fig. :1 showing a burner control member and its associated signal member in the positions they occupy when no. gas is being suppliedyand Fig. 3 is. a view. similar to Fig. 2 showing the signal member moved to the position it occupies whenever its associated valve isabout to be opened.

a The gas range It to which my invention is applied is preferably of the cabinet type shown .in Fig. l, and the control members I I which regulate the supply of gas to the various burners of .the range are grouped on the frontwall of the range. Conveniently, the control members H are arranged to swing in vertical planes about axesin alinement with each other.

' Associated with each control member llis a vertically movable signal member I2, such signal members preferably being so arranged that when in normal position they will'be horizontally alined with each other. The signal members 'l2"are interconnected with the respectively associated control members H to insure that whenever a control member is moved to turn on the gas a corresponding signal --inember l2 will be moved members.

-Conveniently, the various control members and signal members are supported from the rear wall of a casing 15 which is secured against the inner face of the front. wall l6 of-the range. For each control member I I and its associated signal member l2, there is provided a stationary bracket ll which extends forwardly through a vertical slot l8 in the'front wall 16. At its outer end, the bracket I1 is pivotally connected, as by means of a pin 19, with the control'member l l. Desirably, the control member II includes a handle portion 2|] which, when the control member is in normal position, extends downwardly generally parallel to the front wall I6. I

Conveniently, gas is supplied to the various burners of the range from a manifold 22 which extends horizontally parallel to the front wall l6,

each burner being connected to the manifold 22 each link 25 with the associated control member H, I prefer to provide a trunnion 21 which is pivotally mounted in the control member on a horizontal axis between the handle-portion 20 and the front wall of the range, such trunnion being provided with a transverse screw-threaded holefor the reception of the rscrew-threaded end of thelink 25. Attached to each of the brackets ll, as by means of a pivot pin 30 located in rear of the front wall I6, is a swingingmember' 3| which has two vertically spaced arms 32 and 33 extending forwardly through the slot IS. The upper arm 32 carries the signal member l2, which may be in the form of a small plate bearingindicia indicat ingthe position in the range of the associated burner. The lower arm 33 and the control member II have co-operating provisions which insure that wheneverthe-control member H is moved to turn onthe gas the signal "member I2 will be depressed from its normal position.

.sition.

As is clear from Figs. 2 and 3, each control member H is provided with a flange 35 having an inner surface concentric with the pin I9 about which the control member swings. The swinging member 3| is so arranged that the end of the arm 33, which has the upwardly and outwardly extending arcuate shape indicated at 33', may either abut against the end of the flange 35, as indicated in Fig. 2, or may be moved downward so as to clear the flange 35 when the control member H is swung in a counterclockwise direction to open the associated valve 24L As indicated, the swinging-member 3| is biased in a counter-clockwise direction toward the position shown in Fig. 2 by means of a compression spring 31 which acts between the arm 33 and the rear wall of the casing l5 and which is held in place by a tongue 38 formed on the arm 33. Movement of the swinging member 3| under the influence of the spring 31 is conveniently limited by an abutment 39 which engages the rear wall of the easing I5.

When all the gas valves 24 of the range are closed, each of the control members occupies tion with the flanges 35 and the signal members I2 in substantial alinement with each other. When it is desired to light any burner, the associated signal member I2 is first depressed to the position illustrated in Fig. 3. This movement of the signal member causes the swinging member 3| to move in a clockwise direction from the position shown in Fig. 2 and carries the free end 33 of the arm 33 out ofabutting relation with the flange 35, whereupon the control member may be swung to or toward the dotted-line position illustrated in Fig. 3 to open the associated valve 24. In any valve-opening movement of the control member H, the end of the flange 35 is carried inwardly over the free end 33' of the arm 33 and thus prevents the associated spring 31 from moving the swinging member 3| to its normal po- As a result, so long as any valve 24 is open, even to the slightest extent, the associated signal member l2 will be depressed from its normal positionand will be disposed out of alinement with theremaining signal members l2. This disposi tion of any depressed signal member is readily apparent and indicates that the associated valve 24 is at least partially open. a I

Any signal member which has been once depressed and held in depressed position by the flange 35 of the associated control member l| remains in depressed position until the control member is returnedto normal position and the associated valve 24 closed. When that occurs, the flange 35 clears the free end of the arm 33 and permits the spring 31 to restore the swinging member 3| to its normal position.

With the arrangement illustrated in the drawing, it is possible to so dispose the parts of the device that, with the thumb of the operator depressing the signal member l2'the fingersof the same hand'can grasp and move outwardly the handle portion I! of the associated control member Downward movement of each signal member Zunder the influence of thumb-pressure applied to its upper surface may be limited by en- 'gagement of the lower surface of the arm-end'33 with the pin l9, asillustrated in Fig. 3. The arcuate shape of the arm-end 33'- permits the control member II to swing outwardly, as indicated in dotted-lines in Fig. without interference between the flange 35 and the body of the arm 33.

In the preferred arrangement, shown in the drawing, the arm-end 33' and the end of the flange 35 engage on surfaces which are disposed radially relatively to the pin l9 and substantially normal to the line joining their point of engagement with the axis of the pin 30. As a result, any force applied to the control member to move it in a valve-opening direction from normal position has no tendency to displace the swinging member 3|; and, therefore, as long as any signal member is in its normal position accidental valve-opening movement of the associated control member becomes impossible.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a gas range having a front wall, a manifold disposed in rear of said wall and parallel thereto, burner-supply pipes leading rearwardly from said manifold at spaced intervals, a valve in each of said pipes, a plurality of valve-controlling members disposed in front. of said wall and mounted for swinging movement about acommon axis parallel to said manifold, operative connections between said members and the respective valves, a movable element associated with each of said control members, each of said movable elements being supported for pivotal movement about an axis in rear of said wall and including a portion extending forwardly through said wall, and means biasing said element toward a normal position, said element and control member having co-operating provisions for preventing valve-opening movement of said control member when said element is in normal position and for maintaining said element displaced from its normal position whenever the control member is out of the position it occupies 'when'the valve is closed.

2. The invention set forth in claim 1 with-the addition that each of said control members has a handle portion extending downwardly fromits axis, the forwardly extending portion'of the associated movable element being disposed above the axis of the control member in position to be engaged and moved from normal position by the thumb of an operator whose fingers grip the handle portion of the control member.

3. The invention set forth in claim 1 with the addition that the forwardly projecting portions of said movable elements are in substantial alinement when in their respective'normal positions.

4. In a gas range having a front wall, a burnersupply pipe located in rear of said wall, a valve in said pipe, a valve-control member connected to said valve and mounted for swinging movement about an axis located in front of said wall, a looking and indicating element pivotally supported in rear of said wall on an axis parallel to that 01 said control member and having a portion projecting through said front wall, an arcuate flange on said control member concentric with the axis thereof, an arcuate tongue on the forwardly projecting portion of said'element, and means biasing said element to a normal position in which the end of said tongue normally engages the end of said flange to prevent said control member from moving to open said valve, said element JOHN E.; CHAMBERS. 

